The iPod Shuffle Short Story Challenge
by Mar Komi
Summary: Random songs, random stories. 4: Cleopatra's Theme. Off-world mission gone wrong, and Rodney's hoping against hope for rescue.
1. I'm Not a Girl, Not Yet a Woman

_**Song: **"I'm Not a Girl, Not Yet a Woman" with Britney Spears._

_**Season: **2_

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**I'm Not a Girl, Not Yet a Woman**

Major Evan Lorne was not a happy man. He always hated going on off-world missions on football nights, and when the missions turned out to be a bore it was even more annoying. For hours now he had been standing there in a corner, stifling yawns, counting the minutes, watching Dr. Johansen interact with the locals.

He found Dr. Stacey Johansen to be just as boring as the planet. She was the head of the Atlantis Sociology department and she studied alien civilisations and their systems of government, and Evan had soon found out she was one of those career women who only lived and cared for their job, and as he didn't find her job particular interesting, they didn't really have much to talk about.

She seemed to be enjoying herself though. She was talking to a rather masculine looking woman. If it hadn't been for the huge breasts, Evan would have sworn the alien was a man. They both spoke eagerly and gestured a lot with their hands, now and then sharing a laugh. And suddenly they turned towards him. The alien woman/man pointed at him and said something, and Dr. Johansen answered and shook her head, hiding a smirk behind her hand. Evan frowned. What now?

A rather timid looking guy passed by and eyed him curiously, and Evan suddenly realized he was being checked out. He stared back at the little man, who blushed and ran giggling away. Evan followed him with a puzzled gaze. These were strange people, he stated.

He looked up to meet Dr. Johansen's eyes, and she came over, grinning as she approached him. "You must forgive them, Major," she said. "But they think you're a girl."

"I'm a _what?!_" he exclaimed. He, a girl? It was official, these people were completely nuts.

"A girl," she repeated as if she thought he hadn't heard it the first time.

He stared at her. "I take offence of that."

"Why?" she said, and looked dead serious. "You should take it as a compliment. This society is strictly matriarchal. The women are in charge of everything. They occupy all the high positions, and they are the ones who do most of the hard physical labor. That's why they are all so…"

"Manly?" he suggested.

"Strong," she said, giving him a stern and daring look.

"Right," he said, and let his eyes sweep across the village and all the people stealing little glances at him. "They think I'm a girl because I look manly and strong. I guess I can live with that."

"You can," she decided. "Now, let's head back to Atlantis."

Shortly after, when they entered the Atlantis Gateroom through the Stargate, they were met by Colonel Sheppard, and Lorne saluted his superior officer. He always kept to the military protocols, even though the colonel himself usually was a little slacky about the rules.

"As you were, Major," Sheppard said with a smile. "How was the trip?"

"Interesting," Lorne said, in a voice that clearly gave away that he didn't really mean it. "They thought I was a woman."

"Not a woman," Dr. Johansen shot in, as Sheppard raised his eyebrows. "They thought you were a _girl_." And she stepped up beside Evan, leaning in closely. "It takes _years _to become a woman," she whispered. "And I don't think you're there just yet."

And then she pinched his ass and walked away.


	2. The Swallows

_**Song: **"Svalorna" with Laleh_

_**Season: **Pre-expedition_

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**The Swallows**

The teacher was furious. He was furious almost every day. And as usual Radek had no idea what he had done wrong. He had just solved the mathematical problem on the blackboard like the teacher had told him to. But now he stood shivering under the raging man's piercing gaze, realizing that he apparently had _not _been supposed to solve it.

"Don't you lie to me!" the teacher said, spitting out each word, showering Radek with his saliva.

"I'm… I'm not lying, sir," Radek stuttered, his voice thin and quivering.

The teacher bent down and shoved his face closer to Radek's. "How dare you?" he hissed. "This mathematical problem is unsolvable!"

"But I… I just solved it, sir," Radek whispered.

The teacher slapped his face. Radek had known he was going to hit him, but still it came as a surprise. His vision blackened for a few moments and he could feel his cheek become numb and then warm.

"You did not!" the teacher shouted. "You filled the blackboard with nonsense, thinking it would make you look smart. I will not be taken for a fool, boy!"

"I'm sorry…" Radek whispered, stealing a little glance at his classmates. All the other children were sitting silently at their desks, watching the scene in front of them with wide and timid eyes. But some were hiding smirks behind their hands. It was the way it always was.

"I've had it with you," the teacher snarled. He turned and went over to the closet in the corner, retrieving the cane. Radek heard the other children gasp, and he swallowed hard and obediently reached out his hand.

"Hopefully this will teach you," the teacher said and slammed the cane down on the palm of Radek's hand.

The shooting pain made Radek twitch, and tears welled up in his eyes. But he blinked hard and bit his lip. He was _not _going to cry. Not here in front of the class.

The teacher hit him again, and just then the classroom door opened. "That will be quite enough, Mister Sitenský," a voice said, and made the teacher and everybody else turn around to face it.

A man was standing in the doorway. He wore a suit, his shoes were newly polished and very shiny, and he crossed the floor and approached the teacher, putting a hand on his arm. "Don't punish the child because he knows more than you," he said.

The teacher looked like he wanted to say something, like for example how this stranger knew his name, but suddenly he dropped his gaze and looked down at his feet and said nothing. The suit-clad man patted his arm in a condescending manner, then turned towards Radek. "Hello, Radek," he said with a smile.

The man knew _his_ name too, even though Radek had never seen him before. He glanced at his teacher, then his classmates and then he tried to meet the stranger's gaze. The eyes were mild, still Radek had to look away.

"Come with me," the stranger said.

Radek looked at the teacher again, waiting for him to protest, but he just nodded curtly and stepped aside. And then Radek realized that the stranger was one of _them_. The ones you never should meet the eyes of or answer back to, because if you did, terrible things happened to you. He put his hand on Radek's shoulder and led him out of the classroom and down the corridor.

"Are you alright, boy?" he asked. "Did he hurt you?"

"It's fine, sir," Radek replied.

"Good."

They went to the headmaster's office on the top floor, and Radek again wondered what he had done wrong. What he had done to make _them _come. He glanced a little at the man leading him, but didn't dare to open his mouth.

They stopped in the hall outside the office. The door was open, and Radek could see that both his parents were there, along with the headmaster. He met his mother's eyes and she smiled mildly at him, but there were tears in her eyes and Radek swallowed hard once again. He must have done something really terrible this time.

"Wait here," the stranger said. "I will just talk to your parents first."

He entered the office, but didn't close the door completely and Radek could still hear everything that was being said on the inside.

"I am taking him with me today," the stranger said.

"He's just a child," his mother wept.

He was twelve. Small for his age. And now the stranger called him a prodigy.

"He is special. He has great potential. We are taking him to give him the opportunities to live up to that potential."

Radek listened to the rest of the conversation, slowly realizing what this meant. They were taking him away. To the big city. To Prague. To attend another school. A school for children like him.

"He will serve the Party well," the stranger said. And Radek knew right there and then that his parents would do as the man told them to. They would never disobey the Party.

It didn't matter. After all, he wanted to go. Because why would he stay here? His teacher hated him, his classmates didn't understand him. But Prague wanted him. The Party wanted him.

A sound made him look out through the window. There were birds outside. Swallows. He recognized them by their scissor-shaped tails. It made him think about the pigeons at his grandfather's house. Whenever he opened the window in the attic, they would come to him and eat out of his hands. Maybe the swallows would come too?

His hand still ached as he silently pushed the window wide open. The birds flew away. Obviously swallows were not like homing pigeons, Radek thought. Just like he was not like other children.

He stood there watching the birds as they flew above the rooftops of his hometown and out of sight, and then his gaze shifted and he looked at the sky and wondered where his future would take him now. Beyond the clouds like the swallows, perhaps. Maybe even beyond the stars.


	3. You Will See

_**Song: **"You Will See" with Melanie C_

_**Season: **5_

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**You Will See**

One day, Torren, my little boy, when you are older, you will see that John Sheppard, the man I named you after, will always be there for you. He will silently watch you with his observant gaze, always ready to protect you from any harm. He has promised me he will, and he has always kept his promises. With just one look he will tell you everything will be alright, even if neither he nor you actually believe it, and when you most need it, he will make you laugh. One day he will tell you about women. I hope you will listen with a healthy amount of scepticism.

You will see that Rodney McKay is sometimes too bright for his own good. Maybe it is true that he is the smartest man in the universe, but he certainly is not the most patient one. Sometimes he will yell at you, Torren, sometimes you won't even know why. But you should know that, in spite of this, he truly loves you. And when Rodney loves something, he does so unconditionally.

You will know that Ronon will lay down his life for you. He has seen much death in life, Torren, yet he still smiles. He will teach you that your spirit will only be broken if you let it. And when you are a little older and running around in the city, he will pick you up in his arms and throw you high up in the air, making you shriek with joy. And it will melt his heart.

You will learn soon enough that Jennifer Keller keeps lollipops in her desk drawer, and she _will _let you find them. She is a kind and caring woman, whose greatest sorrow is her own insufficiency. She wants so badly to help everyone and it breaks her heart when she is unable to. It makes her think of herself as weak, but she is strong. You will know, Torren. And you must tell her.

You will see that Radek Zelenka is a sweet soul, even if his odd behavior will sometimes puzzle you. He respects all things living and would never harm anyone, and Torren, people often forget to tell him how important he is. Remember to tell him, son, because you will see he puts up with a lot. Some people will say he is a pushover, but, darling, do not listen to them. He is not. He has just learned how to rise above and pick his battles, and that is a rare and under-appreciated gift.

You will see that Carson carries the weight of the world on his shoulders. He sees the little details no one else sees. He remembers the things everyone else forgets. He will hold your hand when you are hurting, and when you need someone who will listen, but not judge you, he is the one you will run to. He will give you so much and not ask for anything in return, and you will realize his heart is big enough to hold the entire universe. And you will see that he is brave, even if _he _is not seeing it.

You will learn from Mr. Woolsey that it is never too late to change your point of view; never too late to widen your horizons. That you can face your fears, and come out stronger and wiser on the other side. Perhaps you will teach him something too? Show him the world through a child's eyes. Teach him to live in the here and now; to see the beauty that surrounds him. I hope you will, Torren.

One day you will hear the tales of Elizabeth Weir. That you will never know her brings me great sadness. She was a wise woman and a true leader. She had no children of her own, Torren, but we were her family nonetheless. She cared for us, nourished us and in the end she made the ultimate sacrifice for us. Like a mother. I know now, Torren, the love she must have felt for us.

Yes, my darling, you will see that you are a part of a family. You will feel the love that surrounds you. Major Lorne will call you his little buddy and teach you how to play football. Chuck at the control station will wiggle his ears at you, and pull treats out of yours.

And you will see, Torren, that in spite of the darkness and all the dangers in this universe – and those I will tell you about some other day – it is a beautiful place I have born you into.


	4. Cleopatra's Theme

_**Song:** "Cleopatra's Theme" with Cleopatra_

_**Season: **2_

**

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****Cleopatra's Theme**

Jumper 4 was Major Lorne's favorite, and he was the one who had named it Cleopatra. Sheppard had hated it. "I believe I'm gonna make it a general rule that no one names things around here except me," he'd said, and Rodney had actually believed he'd meant it. But Lorne didn't care. He had just kept on calling his precious jumper by its new name, until most of the marines used it too.

Jumper 4 – or Cleopatra – had always had this weird sound emitting from its engines. Rodney and Zelenka had looked it over and over again, until finally deciding that it was nothing to worry about. It was just the way this particular jumper sounded. "Like I told you," Lorne had said. "It's just my girl's personality. She stands out in a crowd." Rodney had snorted, wondering if the major had temporarily forgotten that he was talking about a dead thing.

But right now Rodney wasn't wondering about weird-sounding engines, even weirder military guys and their weird habit of naming things. All he was thinking about now was survival, and that the hope of precisely that seemed faint at the moment.

He kept his head low where he lay on the ground, not daring to look up. He could hear Ronon groan nearby, so at least the big Satedan was still alive. And somewhere further away he thought he could hear Teyla's voice. But other than that all he heard was the sound of gunfire.

The off-world mission had gone terribly, terribly wrong. Rodney still wasn't sure what had happened exactly, but the locals apparently had guns and knew how to use them. _Why _they had fired on the Atlantis team, that was another question.

But fired they had. The first bullet had hit Sheppard in the leg, making the colonel yell out in surprise and pain. All had happened very quickly after that. Teyla had shouted at them to take cover, then she had been able to drag Sheppard with her behind some large rocks. Rodney had been yanked away by Ronon, who literally had thrown him into some bushes, where Rodney suddenly had found himself calling frantically into his radio for Atlantis to send backup. But the radio signal had soon been broken, and he didn't know whether they'd heard him or not.

Ronon had taken a bullet too. Rodney didn't know where. He couldn't even look up. The bullets whizzed around him, nailing him to the ground. But he could hear. Hear the locals moving in closer. He'd already emptied his gun. There was no escape.

Then he heard something else. Something beyond the gunfire and Ronon's groaning. A distant sound at first, and he thought for a second or two that he was only imagining it. But then the sound grew louder, and it was familiar to his ears.

Yes?

Yes!

There was no doubt it. What he heard was the distinct sound of Jumper 4's engines. This was Cleopatra's theme.

He managed to flip over on his back and look up at the sky. And there she was, soaring above. Rescue had come.


End file.
